S.W.B. Folsom

I was in Ireland last summer. The people I met were not shy about voicing their opinions of the current administration. Any American who travels overseas and doesn’t think our national baggage will follow them is high on crack cocaine.

There is no weakness in the pursuit of peace; no wokeness in being the best version of ourselves that we have marketed to the world for 80 years. If the United States truly wants to be the “shining city on a hill,” it’s time we start acting like it.

All of this will come to pass as the result of an arguably specious war ordered by the President and enabled by Congress’s refusal to curb his power to do so.

The Iran war will only result in needless suffering & bloodshed — beginning with innocent Iranian citizens dying, continuing with American men & women in uniform making the ultimate sacrifice, & ending with the United States inheriting the mantle as an erratic aggressor state, trustable by no one.

We lost because our government couldn’t define clear objectives, couldn’t stick to a coherent strategy, and couldn’t understand the inherent complexities of the Middle East and Central Asia.

As someone who served, fought, and lost seven young men in Iraq and Afghanistan, let me be clear: we did not lose those wars because they were “politically correct.” We did not lose because of “stupid rules of engagement.”

To be clear: this is a war of choice in — a war with no casus belli, no clear objectives, no strategy, & no defined end state. On top of all that, it's a conflict our childish Secretary of War has decreed will not be “politically correct” — will not be constrained by “stupid rules of engagement.”

Trust me: I have no love for Iran’s government — especially those in power like Ayatollah Khamenei who made careers out of declaring the U.S as “the Great Satan.” But the war the U.S. has started with Iran was not necessary. It was not inevitable.

I remember Iran’s support to the anti-U.S. insurgents during the Iraq war. And I remember personally dealing with the Iranian-controlled Shi’a militia groups in Iraq in 2017-18.

I remember the Iran hostage crisis, watching each day pass as our government seemingly did nothing. I remember the humiliating Operation Eagle Claw disaster. I remember the Tanker War. I remember Iran’s role in the 1983 Beirut bombing.

What the hell are you talking about?

There is no weakness in the pursuit of peace; no wokeness in being the best version of ourselves that we have marketed to the world for 80 years. If the United States truly wants to be the “shining city on a hill,” it’s time we start acting like it.

All of this will come to pass as the result of an arguably specious war ordered by the President and enabled by Congress’s refusal to curb his power to do so.

The Iran war will only result in needless suffering & bloodshed — beginning with innocent Iranian citizens dying, continuing with American men & women in uniform making the ultimate sacrifice, & ending with the United States inheriting the mantle as an erratic aggressor state, trustable by no one.

We lost because our government couldn’t define clear objectives, couldn’t stick to a coherent strategy, and couldn’t understand the inherent complexities of the Middle East and Central Asia.

As someone who served, fought, and lost seven young men in Iraq and Afghanistan, let me be clear: we did not lose those wars because they were “politically correct.” We did not lose because of “stupid rules of engagement.”

To be clear: this is a war of choice in — a war with no casus belli, no clear objectives, no strategy, & no defined end state. On top of all that, it's a conflict our childish Secretary of War has decreed will not be “politically correct” — will not be constrained by “stupid rules of engagement.”

Trust me: I have no love for Iran’s government — especially those in power like Ayatollah Khamenei who made careers out of declaring the U.S as “the Great Satan.” But the war the U.S. has started with Iran was not necessary. It was not inevitable.

I remember Iran’s support to the anti-U.S. insurgents during the Iraq war. And I remember personally dealing with the Iranian-controlled Shi’a militia groups in Iraq in 2017-18.

I remember the Iran hostage crisis, watching each day pass as our government seemingly did nothing. I remember the humiliating Operation Eagle Claw disaster. I remember the Tanker War. I remember Iran’s role in the 1983 Beirut bombing.

I’ll admit, wearing my sunglasses on top of my head is not the classiest thing to do. But I gotta tell you: wearing your sunglasses on the back of your head — at night — is just a stupid look.

Can I raise a practical question at this point? Are we gonna do Tiger Triumph next year?

Something I learned in uniform is that your responsibility to your people doesn’t end when you leave command; it doesn’t even end when you retire.

When one of your former service members texts you that they need to talk — as one of my men did today — drop what you’re doing, call them, & listen.

Really weird and ironic that the JLASS-EX global crisis scenario my war college class participated in back in 2013 was basically the global situation we are now experiencing in 2026.

How I arrived on Bluesky

I’m sure he’s prepping his bus studio as we speak.

This meme is the gift that keeps on giving.

Snap.